Kathmandu, July 10
Project Abhaya, through its Youth Fiscal Accountability Network (YFAN), convened a three-day provincial dialogue in Pokhara from July 5 to July 7. The event gathered youth participants across Gandaki and Lumbini Provinces, alongside elected representatives, journalists, civil society organisations, and technical experts, to examine how national fiscal governance challenges take shape in Gandaki Province.
The dialogue engaged participants through a structured process, beginning with a review of national research findings, testing those findings against provincial realities, identifying local priorities and evidence, and building toward province-level input for a national synthesis. Discussions covered budget implementation, transparency and access to information, public participation in budgeting, accountability mechanisms, and coordination across government levels.
Participants worked in mixed groups to map how these issues appear in Gandaki and Lumbini Province, trace their root causes, and identify the three issues most urgent for the province.
Sujan Regmi, Executive Director of Pokhara Research Institute, led a session on Nepal’s fiscal federalism system, covering the roles of mayors, deputy mayors, and ward chairpersons in the local budget cycle. A second expert session by Bhanu Parajuli, Governance and Planning Expert, focused on transparency, accountability and public oversight.
On the final day, participants took part in a budget simulation exercise built around Nepal’s local government structure, then worked in groups to identify realistic entry points for youth action on the province’s priority issues, including budget literacy, community monitoring, and participation in public hearings.
Highlighting the significance of grounding national fiscal governance findings in provincial realities, Yubraj Poudel from Tanahun said, “Many of our conversations came back to one simple idea: people want to understand how decisions are made and where public money goes. The discussions reminded us that young people do not just want to point out what is wrong. They also want to understand how the system works and find ways to improve it.”
Findings from the dialogue will feed into the “Provincial Perspectives on Fiscal Governance” chapter under Project Abhaya, alongside similar provincial dialogues taking place across Nepal.
